Reclamation Managing Water in the West: Environmental Assessment and Finding of No Significant Impact for Integrated Pest Management in the Pecos River Basin (Sumner, Brantley and Avalon Dams); Carlsbad Project, New Mexico 2007-2012

摘要

A proposal to authorize the Bureau of Reclamation, including cooperators (Carlsbad Irrigation District and Brantley Lake State Park, Sumner Lake State Park, New Mexico Department of Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources) and contractors, to use pesticides to control undesirable native and non-native plants on facilities and lands managed by Reclamation on the Pecos River, New Mexico (Carlsbad Project), was analyzed in an Environmental Assessment (EA). The project area includes: (1) Sumner, Brantley, and Avalon Dam Faces and Structures; (2) riparian Areas on the River and Lakebeds; and (3) Brantley Lake and Sumner State Park Recreation Sites. In addition, the proposed treatment of weed and insect pests at Brantley Lake and Sumner Lake State Parks also was evaluated. The EA describes two alternatives: (1) Alternative A - No Action and (2) Alternative B - the Proposed Action to use herbicides as part of an Integrated Vegetation/Pest Management Strategy. Under the No Action Alternative, pesticides would not be used on Reclamation lands, but cooperators would continue to use manual and mechanical control methods that were authorized under other environmental analyses. Under the Proposed Action, pesticides would be used on an annual basis to control vegetation that threatens the structural integrity of dam structures, or adversely affects the adequate flow-carrying capacity of water conveyance. In addition, this analysis will also address the management of weeds invading recreation sites at Brantley Lake and Sumner Lake State Parks and control of insect pests that damage trees near facilities and recreation sites or insects that are considered to be a nuisance to visitors.